Ethics Project

1. Censorship of Young
Adult Literature
Jennifer La Vine and Savannah Whitaker

3. Censorship of Young
Adult Literature
The issue: prevention of Intellectual Freedom
“Children and young adults are often looking
for images of themselves, images as they are
at that moment, struggling with parent conflicts,
problem acne, feelings of rejection, and raging
hormones, and images of what they might
become. Literature affords the distance to
examine one's self or potential self in a way
not otherwise possible” (Curry, 2001).

4. History of
Censorship

5. Twelve changes in American society that
accounts for the growth of censorship
Changes in the literature curriculum
The paperback revolution
The increasing number of students in school
The increased amount of education which students receive
The divisive (causing disagreement) nature of education
The success of the schools
The increase in reading by Americans
The increasing cost of education
The view of education as scapegoat
The role of education to reinforce democratic values
An increased willingness to protest government actions
Mistakes made by the schools

6. Examples of Censored Books
in the South

7. Censorship vs. Selection
“Are We Selecting? Or Are We Censoring.” By
Christine M. Allen
Why are works selected? Not selected?
Contemporary vs. Classic Young Adult
Literature and controversial topics
Censorship and unexciting collections

8. Censorship in Our Schools
“Censor your own
child not mine!”

9. Intellectual Freedom and
Censorship
“Where is Judy Blume? Controversial Fiction
for Older Children and Young Adults” By Ann
Curry
Moving materials
Reasons why materials are censored
Importance of keeping challenging materials

10. Self-censorship
“Moving Toward a Method to Test for Selfcensorship by School Library Media
Specialists” By Ken P. Coley
Causes of self-censorship
Texas Schools and Media Specialists (the
study)
82% practiced self-censorship
18% owned NONE of the chosen titles

11. Book Removal in
Schools
“The Question...What Should I Do If My
Principal Orders Me to Remove an
Unchallenged Book?” By Gail Dickinson
Two different options: Remove it...Don’t
remove it
New vs. Practiced Media Coordinators
Job preservation

12. Intellectual Freedom
“Championing Intellectual Freedom: A School
Administrator's Guide” By Jeffrey Gibson
Two scenarios of book removal
Ways the School Media Coordinator can help
Being a “Champion for students” (preserving
First Amendment rights

13. Addressing the Problem
Is the movement of materials an option? Or is
this yet another form of censorship?
Promote parental involvement in School Media
Centers

14. Conclusion
“No book is safe in today’s
censorship climate” (Brown,
1994).

15. References
Allen, C. M. (2007). Are we selecting? Or are we censoring. Young Adult Library Services,
5(3), 5.
Brown, J. E., & National Council of Teachers of English. (1994). Preserving intellectual
freedom: Fighting censorship in our schools. Urbana, Ill: National Council of Teachers of
English.Burress, L. (1989). Battle of the books: Literary censorship in the public schools,
1950-1985. Metuchen, N.J: Scarecrow Press.Coley, K. P. (2002). Moving toward a method to
test for self-censorship by school library
media specialists {computer file}. School Library Media Research, 5.Curry, A. (2001). Where
is Judy Blume? Controversial fiction for older children and young adults. Journal Of Youth
Services In Libraries, 14(3), 28-37.
Dickinson, G. (2007). The question...What should I do if my principal orders me to remove
an unchallenged book?. Knowledge Quest, 36(2), 70-71.
Gibson, J. (2007). Championing intellectual freedom: A school administrator's guide.
Knowledge Quest, 36(2), 46-48.
Hull, M. (1999). Censorship in America: A reference handbook. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABCCLIO.Riley, G. B. (1998). Censorship. New York: Facts on File.Simmons, J. S. (1994).
Censorship: A threat to reading, learning, thinking. Newark, Del:
International Reading Association.